Psalm 104

Key takeaways

Psalm 104 belongs to astronomy; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Psalm 104 to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Psalm 104 from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Psalm 104 is the 104th psalm of the Book of Psalms, beginning in Hebrew "ברכי נפשי" (barachi nafshi: "bless my soul"); in English in the King James Version: "Bless the LORD, O my soul. O LORD my God, thou art very great". In the slightly different numbering system used in the Greek Septuagint and the Latin Vulgate version of the Bible, this psalm is Psalm 103. In Latin, it is known as "Benedic anima mea Domino". Psalm 104 is used as a regular part of Jewish, Eastern Orthodox, Catholic, Lutheran, Anglican and other Protestant liturgies. It has often been set to music, including works by John Dowland, Heinrich Schütz, Philip Glass and William Lovelady. The inaugural occurrence of the term "Hallelujah" within the Old Testament can be identified in Psalm 104, with subsequent instances found in Psalms 105 and 106. Notably, O. Palmer Robertson perceives these Psalms as a cohesive triad, serving as the concluding compositions of Book 4. Hallelujah will also appear in Psalms 113, 117, 135 and 146 through 150. The psalm bears a notable resemblance to Akhenaten's Great Hymn to the Aten, written some 400 years earlier in Egypt.

Structure vanGemeren notes a chiastic structure in Psalm 104, and Grogan notes that the structure follows the creation narrative in Genesis 1:

Contents One of the longer psalms, Psalm 104 is traditionally divided into 35 verses. The titles below are those of vanGemeren.

Verses 1–4: In Praise of God's Royal Splendor This echoes the first two days of creation in Genesis 1, and describes God as king moving through his royal dwelling. It begins by describing the glory of God ("Who coverest thyself with light as with a garment" v. 2). This could also be rendered "you... who wraps... who stretches...".

Verse 2 shows the ease with which God acts. He spreads out the heavens as one would spread out a tent.

Verses 5–9: The Material Formation of the Earth This covers day 3 of creation in Genesis 1, and with the next section, describes the functioning and ordering of the world, and makes it clear that even "the deep" is created by God, and not something existing "prior to" God, as in Babylonian creation mythology.

Verse 5 asserts that God has "laid the foundations [מכון] of the Earth". Verse 7: "Rebuke" does not imply judgment, but absolute control of the elements. Verse 9 not only refers to Genesis 1:9-10, but also the covenant with Noah in Genesis 8:21-22 and 9:8-17.

Verses 10–18: The Glory of Animal Creation A minor chiasm is evident: A i. Water in the mountains (v.10)

ii. Wild animals (v.11) iii. Birds (v.12) B i. Water in the mountains (v.13) ii. Domesticated animals, plants, man (vv.14–15) A′ i. Water in the mountains (v.16)

iii. Birds (v.16) ii. Mountain animals (vv.17–18) Verse 10 (water flowing down) replaces water flowing over (verse 8). A home is made for the creatures.

Verses 19–23: The Regularity of the Created World This and the following section cover days 4 and 5 of the Genesis 1 creation story. See the section on the Aten hymn below for similarities to the Egyptian hymn.

Verses 24–26: The Glory of Animal Creation Verse 26 mentions the Leviathan (sea monster) in a way that emphasizes that it is just another one of God's creatures, likened to an object of entertainment, and not a challenge to his authority, as was believed by surrounding Canaanite tribes

Verses 27–30: The Spiritual Sustenance of the Earth Verses 27–30 emphasise how all creatures still depend on the ongoing attention and provision of the creator, and perish should he avert his attention. Verse 30 reads "Thou sendest forth thy spirit, they are created: and thou renewest the face of the earth." (KJV)

Verses 31–35: In Praise of God's Royal Splendor The concluding verses end where the Psalm began, reiterating the power and glory of YHWH, and the composer expresses his adoration, and, in the final verse, his wish that the sinners (חטא) and wicked (רשע) be "consumed out of the earth". In the Masoretic text, the phrase Hallelujah is placed at the end of the final verse, and is seen as the introduction of the next Psalm. This is lacking in the Septuagint and the Vulgate, but it is rendered by the KJV as "Praise ye the LORD".

Similarity to the Great Hymn to the Aten Psalm 104 bears similarities to the Egyptian Great Hymn to the Aten (14th century BC), which is frequently cited as a parallel text. in particular:

Grogan, Craigie, and Zimmerli note that as with parallels to other Ancient Near Eastern creation narratives in Genesis 1, the difference between the Biblical and other Ancient Near Eastern accounts is that in the Biblical narratives, the sun and other parts of creation are not gods, but creations themselves. The psalm is polemical and therefore "implicitly antipagan" (Grogan). Rather than copying from the Aten hymn, Psalm 104 is understood to be commenting or criticizing. This is further reinforced by the structure, in which the focal point of the chiasm is the orderliness of nature in which the celestial bodies are time keepers rather than deities. Biblical scholar Mark S. Smith has commented that "Despite enduring support for the comparison of the two texts, enthusiasm for even indirect influence has been tempered in recent decades. In some quarters, the argument for any form of influence is simply rejected outright. Still some Egyptologists, such as Jan Assmann and Donald Redford, argue for Egyptian influence on both the Amarna correspondence (especially in EA 147) and on Psalm 104". vanGemeren concludes that "though this matter has received extensive treatment (See Allen pp.28–30) any discussion on the literary association is complicated by the insufficient evidence of the cosmological framework of the surrounding nations and, hence, by the tentativeness of any theory explaining the relations and possible polemical use of these materials".

Uses

New Testament In the New Testament, verse 4 is quoted in Hebrews 1:7.

Judaism Many Observant Jews recite Psalm 104 during morning services on the New Moon (Rosh Chodesh), though customs vary. It is recited in many communities following the Shabbat Mincha between Sukkot and Shabbat Hagadol. Some recite verses 1–2 upon donning the tallit during morning services. Verse 24 is part of Hameir La'aretz in the Blessings before the Shema during Shacharit and is found in Pirkei Avot Chapter 6, no. 10. Verse 31 is the first verse of Yehi Kivod in Pesukei Dezimra, is part of Baruch Hashem L'Olam during Maariv, and is recited when opening the Hakafot on Simchat Torah.

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Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Psalm 104

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Psalm 104 claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In astronomy, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Psalm 104 before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Psalm 104 ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Psalm 104

In research: Psalm 104 appears in astronomy research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Psalm 104 in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Psalm 104 is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Psalms, Religious cosmologies, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Psalm 104 outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

How to study Psalm 104 in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Psalm 104 means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Psalm 104 out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Psalm 104 in simple terms?

Psalm 104 is the 104th psalm of the Book of Psalms, beginning in Hebrew "ברכי נפשי" (barachi nafshi: "bless my soul"); in English in the King James Version: "Bless the LORD, O my soul. O LORD my God, thou art very great".

Why does Psalm 104 matter?

Because it connects several astronomy ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Psalm 104?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Psalm 104.